Manufacture of woven plush or pile fabrics



June 29, 1943. A. YOUNG Em 2,323,269

MANUFACTURE'OF WOVEN PLUSH ORPILE mmrcs Filed Jan. 22, 1942 fa)? rosl/erzor fife/V2. ggm f 1 6f @atented June 29, E943 Alexander Young, Glasgow, and Ian Grosvenor Stewart, Edinburgh, Scotland Application January 22, 1942, Serial No. 427,790 in Great Britain April 19, 1941 2 Claims.

This invention hasreference to the manufacture of carpets, floor rugs, table covers and other woven plush, cut-pile or loop-pile fabrics woven on a hand or power loom, including chenille fabrics and woven tufted pile fabrics and has reference to that class of pile fabric which has a natural fibrous pile surface.

The object of the present invention is to produce a non-slip flexible durable uncrushable and non-frayable fabric in which the pile threads are bound to the backing structure in a novel or improved manner.

According to the present invention a pile fabric woven in the usual manner to present a natural fibrous pile surface is woven with the incorporation in the backing structure of inextensible or non-elastic threads of textile yarn impregnated or coated with rubber, the backing structure being treated, subsequent to the weaving process, in

such a manner as to cause the rubber of the rubber-coated or rubber-impregnated yarn to infiltrate into and to bind the pile threads to the backing structure.

For the sake of brevity, textile yarn coated or impregnated with rubber is hereinafter termed "rubberized yarn or rubberized thread" and the term rubber" is to be understood as including either natural or synthetic rubber or any known rubber composition of rubber substitute.

It may be explained that it is known to produce rubberized yarn by impregnating the fibres of a textile yarn with solutions, suspensions or dispersions of coagulable rubber latex and our invention contemplates the use of cotton, woolen, worsted, linen, hemp, jute or like yarns coated or impregnated with a solution, suspension or dispersion of coagulable rubber latex, without vulcanization.

In carrying out the invention we therefore prefer that the rubberized threads incorporated in the backing structure during the weaving of the pile fabric with a natural fibrous pile shali'be textile yarn impregnated or 'coated with unvulcanized or only partially vulcanized rubber and that the backing structure be subjected after the.

weaving operation to treatment with a rubber solvent to cause the rubber of the rubberized threads to infiltrate into the pile threads to such an extent as to bind the pile threads to the backing structure. Instead of treatment with a rubber solvent, the backing structure may be treated, after the weaving operation, by applying thereto a solution or dispersion of rubber which will partially soften or dissolve the rubber of the rubberized threads and will also cause rubber to infiltrate into and bind the pile threads to the backing structure, and if necessary increase the density or thickness of the backing.

' The backing structure may consist wholly or mainly of rubberized threads or such threads may be incorporated in the backing structure as and where desired provided the proportion of rubberized threads in the backing structure is sufficient to effect binding of most ofthe pile threads to the backing structure when the latter is treated with a rubber solvent or with a solution or dispersion of rubber as already described.

Th application to the backing structure of a solution or dispersion of rubber may be, effected bysubjecting the back of the fabric to jets or sprays of the rubber solution or dispersion. Woven plush, cut-pile or loop-pile fabrics produced according to the present invention, have the feature that where the rubberized threads cross each other, the treatment subsequent to weaving causes the rubberized threads to be united together and the backing structure is in part durability, non-rotting and electrical resisting properties to the fabric and render it uncrushable, without impairing the flexibility of the fabric.

The accompanying drawing illustrates one example of the manner in which the invention can be carried into effect, Fig. 1 being a section to an enlarged scale showing a known form of tapestry carpet weave and Fig. 2 a view to alarger scale looking on the back of the fabric.

Referring to the drawing, Fig. 1 illustrates a common form of carpet weave in which the cut pile warp 3 is bound to the backing structure by means of the usual chain warp threads 4 and 5 passing alternately over and under weft threads 6 and I, there being for each pile warp 3 four stufier warp threads 8 floated between the weft threads 6 and i. The weave shown is only one of several common forms to which the invention may be applied.

In carrying out the invention as applied to the carpet weave illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, all the threads 4, 5, 6, I and 8 may be of rubberized thread woven in the usual manne'ron the loom. However, if desired, some of the thread 4, 5, 6,

1 or 8 may be of. rubberized thread and the remainder of non-rubberized thread. Obviously there may be any number of stufier warp threads 8 for each pile warp 3 or the stufler threads may be omitted, and the pile 'may be a cut or uncut 100p pile or chenille weft according to the form of weave adopted. I

-As already stated, after the fabric has been woven in known manner the backing structure is subjected to treatment with a rubber solvent or with a solution or dispersion of rubber to cause the rubber of the rubberized thread to soften, thereby uniting the intersecting rubberized threads together and causing infiltration of rubber into the pile threads, with the result that the pile becomes firmly bound to the backing structure.

It will be understood that, if the rubberized thread consists of textile yarn coated or impregnated with unvulcanized coagulated rubber incorporating vulcanizing agents, the backing structure of the fabric,- after the binding of the p le thread to the backing by subjecting the backing to treatment with a rubber solvent or a solution or dispersion of rubber, may be subjected to any, known hot or cold vulcanizing process to vulcanize the rubber of the rubberized thread and the rubber which has infiltrated into the pile threads. Likewise it will be understood that the rubberized threads of the backing structure may be coated on impregnated with unvulcanized rubber and that in subsequently treating the backing structure with a solution or dispersion of rubber, the latter may incorporate-vulcanizing agents in known manner so that the fab;

ric can be subsequently subjected to a hot or cold vulcanizing process to vulcanize the rubber applied to the backing in the form of a solution or dispersion.

We claim:

1. The method of manufacturing pile fabrics having a natural fibrous pile surface which consists in interweaving a natural fibrous pile with a backing structure incorporating inextensible rubberized threads of textile yarn, and thereafter applying to the backing structure a solu-,- tion or dispersion of .rubber to cause the rubber to infiltrat into the pile and to bind it to the backing structure, the said solution or dispersioh being applied in suflicient quantity to incre the density or thickness of the backing structur 2. The method of manufacturing pile fabric having non-slip, flexible, durable and uncrushable characteristics and presenting non-fraying edges when out, which consists in interweaving a natural fibrous pile with a backing structure incorporating a substantial proportion of inextensible rubberized threads of textile yarn, and thereafter spraying the backing structure with a softening agent to cause the rubber of the rubberized threads to infiltrate into and bind the threads of the backing structure to one another and to the natural fibrous pile, the said softening agent including rubber in solution or suspension in sufficient quantity to increase the density and rubber content of the backing structure.

ALEXANDER YOUNG. IAN G. STEWART. 

